By Buzz Byrne

Napoleon LeNez has a gift. His nose and nasal glands are a cut above. His fancies himself something of a prophet of the olfactory sense and his new book, THE SMELL OF SUCCESS will prove that. His protégé, Juanita Gray (Sarah Jane Jensen), sneaks a peek and a sniff and poof, BOOM!...Death by scratch and sniff.

This is the fun we expect from PUSHING DAISIES and more people should be watching it.

Ned (Lee Pace) is uncomfortable with change. How do we know this? Chuck (Anna Friel) wants the shop, The Pie Hole, to start selling pie cups. Cupcake sized pies made with her personally harvested urban honey. Before this non-physical-contact-making lovers spat can be developed Emerson Cod (Chi McBride) gets them on the Gray/LeNez case.


It is evident that Gray wasn’t the target. LeNez was. “Your book was a bomb.” Emerson tells LeNez. “Who are you to criticize my life’s work?!” Spoken like a true writer. The first suspect is the author who got his book bumped so THE SMELL OF SUCCESS could be moved up. That author is Chas Speilman and his book, POP UP PIN UP touches Emerson in a profound way, not just for the naughty pictures. He also authored a pop up book similar to THE ANARCHIST’S COOKBOOK so he could have made the bomb. This actually goes a ways towards clearing him as a suspect.

Chuck has co-opted Olive Snook (Kristin Chenoweth, my God, Kristin Chenoweth- for some reason I have to say her name twice), in the charge of pushing her Aunts to live life while they can and give up their shut-in existence. Chemically enhanced pies have not helped so they employ the power of the nose. The smell of chlorine was like “bottled sunshine” to Aunt Lillian (Swoosie Kurtz). When Olive presents it, Lil almost smiles when she smells it again but that was actually gas.

A new suspect emerges when a second attempt on LeNez’s life is made. His chief rival in the smell business, Oscar Vibinius (Paul Reubens). A man with a similar talent to LeNez, but where LeNez removes himself from the foul smells of the world to enjoy the beautiful ones, Vibinius works for the Public Works, in the sewers, blanketing himself with the stench of the world so he may truly appreciate all smells.


LeNez pegged Chuck as smelling of honey and death. He assumed it was her perfume. When Vibinius caught a whiff of her, he knew it wasn’t perfume. Her secret is in jeopardy. Especially when LeNez is revealed as the true culprit, perpetrating the attempts for publicity and Vibinius is cleared to pursue this puzzle.

Aunt Lillian and Vivian found the courage to wander from their home. Homely Viv leads Lil to a pool with a serenade of “Morning has Broken”. A touching montage, reminiscent of an Esther Williams swimming number and a controlled rendition of the song made this not just unique but touching. And surprising, since I hate musicals. But this was understated audacity.

This show keeps impressing.